


Reconciliation

by zulu



Category: This is Wonderland
Genre: Character of Colour, F/F, Female Protagonist
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-01-19
Updated: 2008-01-19
Packaged: 2017-10-02 00:52:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 824
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/906
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zulu/pseuds/zulu
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alice and Nancy resolve their differences.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Reconciliation

**Author's Note:**

  * For [daemonluna](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=daemonluna).



Alice curls in the corner of the couch, her feet drawn up underneath her, warm and comfortable and clean from the bath she's jut climbed out of. She's dressed in layers of fleece and flannel, January-in-Toronto nightwear, fuzzy slippers and old pyjama pants and her beat up McGill sweatshirt. She's got the remains of the too-decadent-to-be-fair chocolate cake from the freezer in a bowl on her lap, and a glass of red wine at her elbow.

At the opposite end of the couch, Nancy sits stiff-backed and severe, the Canada Criminal Code open on her lap. Alice is pretty happy that at least she's reading, instead of fuming with her arms tightly crossed and burning through their wall with her laser glare. For one thing, Alice thinks their neighbours probably wouldn't appreciate the flaming hole in the drywall.

"Nancy..." she tries, cajoling.

Nancy sniffs: a disgusted, dismissive sniff. Alice fights back her grin. This could go on all night, if she wants: she could mention that she believes the NDP might take more than five seats in the next election; that she's thinking of defending Rosemary pro-bono the next time she asks, because it's just easier that way; that she agrees with legalizing marijuana, and not just for medicinal purposes. Nancy's back would tighten even further as Alice spins out the fantasy and gathers chocolate on the tip of her spoon. Alice would never, ever laugh when she won her bet with herself and Nancy snaps that just because Harper is an idiot it doesn't mean that PC is the only real alternative, that Rosemary is a thief and a drug addict and a thief, and that if Alice wants to relive her glory days as a college stoner then she can at least have the courtesy to let Nancy find her own apartment first.

But Alice doesn't want to fight all night (as fun as it would be), so she licks her spoon clean, humming around the last mouthful of smooth sugary icing, and says, "Nancy, come on."

Nancy stiffens even further, prim and proper and this time Alice can't help smiling. She sips her wine and then places the glass down. She wriggles closer to Nancy on the couch. Nancy's glare hardens.

"You," Alice says, breathing next to Nancy's ear, "are a sore loser."

Nancy rolls her eyes so hard that her whole body seems involved in the motion. "You," she says, "beat me! At _chess_. _You_."

"It's not _that_ surprising," Alice says, drawing back with a tinge of defensiveness. "My dad taught all three of us..."

"At _chess_," Nancy wails. "I was the Toronto Junior champion for three _years_."

Alice laughs out loud then, and resumes her assault on Nancy's neck, kissing lower. "Junior _Champion_," she says. "What years?"

"1988, 1989, and...ah...1991."

"Ohhh," Alice says, and noses closer to Nancy's collarbone. "What happened in 1990?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing at all?"

"Just--if you're going to keep doing _that_, why should I ever want associate it with 1990?"

"Because," Alice says, and pauses to slip Nancy's blouse off her shoulders, one hand sneaking upwards to cup her breast through her bra. "You're too competitive."

"I just like to win--"

"And win, and win, and win some more," Alice agrees.

"_Yes_," Nancy says, and it's not quite clear if it's agreement with what Alice is saying or what she's doing. "Yes. I want to win."

"But you don't always," Alice says, she sits back to strip off her sweatshirt. She's not wearing a bra, and it's cold enough that her nipples tighten immediately.

"You probably cheated," Nancy whines, but she is watching Alice very closely and her heart's not in it. "When I turned my back...your rook..."

"My...castle?" Alice says, moving her knee to straddle Nancy on the couch.

"I hate that. I hate when you do that."

"This?"

"_No_. That's fine. When you call them castles. Can't you just--"

"I like calling them castles." Nancy's bra is off now and Alice slips her fingers underneath the waistband of her skirt.

"That's--you're just trying to--"

"Distract you?" Alice offers. "Can you--"

"Oh, fine," Nancy says, and unzips her skirt as if it's a sacrifice. "There is nothing wrong with wanting to win, Alice. There is nothing wrong with healthy competition...."

"Mm-hmm," Alice says, sliding sucking kisses down Nancy's breast, then taking her nipple in her mouth. "Doesn't bother you at all...don't have to learn to be a better loser..."

"It means that I am _focused_," Nancy says. "That I will do _anything_ to get what I want."

"Prove it," Alice says, and then before she knows what's happening, Nancy has pushed her sideways and she is yanking off Alice's pyjama pants and showing just how _focused_ she can be. The last intelligible thing she says is "Shut _up_," and Alice does, because--oh--if this is Nancy winning, then maybe she doesn't have to learn anything at all.


End file.
